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Cara Goldthorpe offers some tips for developing a positive mindset, making healthy choices and optimising time and (work) space when we are predominantly home-based
In these winter months, as the COVID-19 tunnel stretches on and we are stuck indoors, unable to enjoy familiar forms of entertainment and socialising, we might be wondering – are we even really living? We’re working from home, isolating, social distancing, all in the name of health, but is our lifestyle really a healthy one?
These days, faced with the challenges of COVID-19, you might be struggling to stick to a healthy routine. But I want to show you that living healthily doesn’t have to be difficult, sharing some simple yet fundamental techniques I developed when nursing my body back to health after a post-viral fatigue. Before integrating these practices, as a junior barrister I would often find myself working all hours of the day and night, in a persistent state of general anxiety, and unable to listen to my own needs, let alone communicate them to my clerks and leaders. I hope you can use these tools as a springboard, as you embark on your own journey towards a healthier life.
A positive mindset will assist you to make the healthy choices you want, and enhance your overall feeling of wellbeing. Here are my five top tips:
1. Change your perspective: every situation can be viewed another way, so actively look for the silver lining. You might be fed up of lockdowns and home working, but think of some positives this time has brought. And, if something ‘negative’ happens, take three deep breaths to calm your nervous system. Triggered by an email? Overwhelmed by a new deadline or a demand from a client? Pause, so that you can then tackle the problem in a solution-oriented way instead of becoming absorbed in a stress-state.
2. Appreciate the positives:good things deserve savouring, and by doing so, we can amplify the associated good feelings. A great way to do this is with a gratitude practice – take a few minutes daily to express thanks for the things you value and do have in your life. Remember that being alive itself is a tremendous gift.
3. Develop a wealth list: many things, beyond the money in your bank account, can make you feel wealthy. Defining wealth more broadly will help you to understand what gives you true value in your life, and then make sure you get it. When this definition isn’t pinned to your bank balance, it also becomes easier to cope with financial challenges, particularly these days if your billing has been affected by the pandemic. Examples of wealth in this richer form could include: quality relationships, feeling healthy and energetic, a beautiful home, and delicious food.
4. Make your home (and home-office!) your temple: our external space and internal state are symbiotically linked, and so a good way to support your mental state is to create a positive physical environment around you.
5. View food as your medicine and best friend: a nutritious, immune-boosting diet is the best way to prevent (and treat) disease, so work on developing a relationship with healthy food where you value it for its positive impact on your body.
Everybody is unique, so a crucial step to developing a healthy (and sustainable) routine is to become aware of what works for you. Ask yourself:
Then use your answers as a framework to build your unique routine:
As you go about making healthy choices, avoid fixating on negatives such as the ‘deprivation’ of certain foods or the ‘obligation’ to exercise, and focus on the positive that every choice can bring. Negative mentalities cultivate negative feelings, and when you don’t feel good, it’s harder to swim against the current of existing unhealthy habits.
Depending on your living arrangements – if you have children at home, or are giving support to vulnerable family members – you might feel additional pressure on time or space. But don’t forget you also have more time, from no longer commuting, or going out.
Equally, what we perceive as a lack of physical space may be symptomatic of us failing to set clear boundaries with people and with our time, or arise out of disorder in our environment. Our experience of physical time and space can be optimised through a variety of methods. Try some of these:
Living in the present, consciously building up simple, good habits, and appreciating the positives, doesn’t have to be hard. And doing so is a big step towards a healthier lifestyle. Wake up. Really smell your morning coffee, before you dive into that trial bundle. Look out the window and notice something interesting about even the greyest cloud, and tell someone special you love them. Don’t forget, that person includes yourself.
In these winter months, as the COVID-19 tunnel stretches on and we are stuck indoors, unable to enjoy familiar forms of entertainment and socialising, we might be wondering – are we even really living? We’re working from home, isolating, social distancing, all in the name of health, but is our lifestyle really a healthy one?
These days, faced with the challenges of COVID-19, you might be struggling to stick to a healthy routine. But I want to show you that living healthily doesn’t have to be difficult, sharing some simple yet fundamental techniques I developed when nursing my body back to health after a post-viral fatigue. Before integrating these practices, as a junior barrister I would often find myself working all hours of the day and night, in a persistent state of general anxiety, and unable to listen to my own needs, let alone communicate them to my clerks and leaders. I hope you can use these tools as a springboard, as you embark on your own journey towards a healthier life.
A positive mindset will assist you to make the healthy choices you want, and enhance your overall feeling of wellbeing. Here are my five top tips:
1. Change your perspective: every situation can be viewed another way, so actively look for the silver lining. You might be fed up of lockdowns and home working, but think of some positives this time has brought. And, if something ‘negative’ happens, take three deep breaths to calm your nervous system. Triggered by an email? Overwhelmed by a new deadline or a demand from a client? Pause, so that you can then tackle the problem in a solution-oriented way instead of becoming absorbed in a stress-state.
2. Appreciate the positives:good things deserve savouring, and by doing so, we can amplify the associated good feelings. A great way to do this is with a gratitude practice – take a few minutes daily to express thanks for the things you value and do have in your life. Remember that being alive itself is a tremendous gift.
3. Develop a wealth list: many things, beyond the money in your bank account, can make you feel wealthy. Defining wealth more broadly will help you to understand what gives you true value in your life, and then make sure you get it. When this definition isn’t pinned to your bank balance, it also becomes easier to cope with financial challenges, particularly these days if your billing has been affected by the pandemic. Examples of wealth in this richer form could include: quality relationships, feeling healthy and energetic, a beautiful home, and delicious food.
4. Make your home (and home-office!) your temple: our external space and internal state are symbiotically linked, and so a good way to support your mental state is to create a positive physical environment around you.
5. View food as your medicine and best friend: a nutritious, immune-boosting diet is the best way to prevent (and treat) disease, so work on developing a relationship with healthy food where you value it for its positive impact on your body.
Everybody is unique, so a crucial step to developing a healthy (and sustainable) routine is to become aware of what works for you. Ask yourself:
Then use your answers as a framework to build your unique routine:
As you go about making healthy choices, avoid fixating on negatives such as the ‘deprivation’ of certain foods or the ‘obligation’ to exercise, and focus on the positive that every choice can bring. Negative mentalities cultivate negative feelings, and when you don’t feel good, it’s harder to swim against the current of existing unhealthy habits.
Depending on your living arrangements – if you have children at home, or are giving support to vulnerable family members – you might feel additional pressure on time or space. But don’t forget you also have more time, from no longer commuting, or going out.
Equally, what we perceive as a lack of physical space may be symptomatic of us failing to set clear boundaries with people and with our time, or arise out of disorder in our environment. Our experience of physical time and space can be optimised through a variety of methods. Try some of these:
Living in the present, consciously building up simple, good habits, and appreciating the positives, doesn’t have to be hard. And doing so is a big step towards a healthier lifestyle. Wake up. Really smell your morning coffee, before you dive into that trial bundle. Look out the window and notice something interesting about even the greyest cloud, and tell someone special you love them. Don’t forget, that person includes yourself.
Cara Goldthorpe offers some tips for developing a positive mindset, making healthy choices and optimising time and (work) space when we are predominantly home-based
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